Three months after shortlisted candidates were interviewed, the position of Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) director general remains unfilled with no word from appointing authorities, it has emerged.
The Nation yesterday unsuccessfully tried to get the status of the recruitment process from Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs and President Peter Mutharika’s office.
Parliament, which also plays a part in the recruitment through the Public Appointments Committee (PAC), said there was no official communication yet.
The position of ACB chief has been vacant since the expiry of the contract of former director general Martha Chizuma in May 2024. Since then, the office has been filled by acting director generals, a development governance and legal minds have said weakens the graft fight.
When contacted yesterday, presidential press secretary Cathy Maulidi asked for more time to respond to questions on whether the President has received the names of the successful candidate.
Minister of Justice and Constitutional Affairs Charles Mhango also requested that questions be sent in writing, but had not responded by press time at 9pm.
In a separate interview yesterday, Parliament’s PAC chairperson Felix Njawala said his committee has not been approached regarding the appointment of a substantive ACB director general.
“We have not received anything relating to the appointment of the substantive director general,” he said.
The recruitment process involves the Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs submitting names of the three successful candidates to the President, who then nominates one candidate for confirmation by PAC of Parliament.
Mutharika appointed then private practice lawyer Gabriel Chembezi as acting director general last November.
The Corrupt Practices Act stipulates that the acting director general can be in office for six months and that the President can extend tenure where a substantive office bearer is yet to be appointed or the process is stalled by investigations.
Following the expiry of Chizuma’s contract, former president Lazarus Chakwera appointed then deputy director general Hillary Chilomba in an acting capacity. His tenure was later extended amid an Office of the Ombudsman investigation into the recruitment process for the substantive head.
Last week, Malawi Law Society, in a statement co-signed by its president Davis Njobvu and honorary secretary Francis M’mame, expressed concern that the ACB has operated without a substantive director for two years and one month and that there appears to be no urgency in filling the position.
